Sunday, August 31, 2008

Gustaf

Horrible that the Gulf Coast must endure another hurricane hit. Maybe it goes with living there, but it must be very difficult.

I keep thinking, what would I do, where would I go, if I had to leave, perhaps never to return. I'm well set, however, because I have access to a car, and can sleep inside it, if I have to, off somewhere, at least for awhile. Where would I get food and water? Well, in Oregon water isn't too much of an issue at least. Food? It can be. Not right now, when you can always find an overflowing apple tree. That's if all the apples had not been destroyed by a natural disaster. What if they were?

I don't worry too much about things I cannot control. You hope for the best. I would hope New Orleans residents this time heed the warning and leave. I could not believe that last time, even people who could not or would not leave, did not at least prepare, filling anything they could with water, storing some food, having these things in a day pack ready, even having some sort of flotation device on hand, a couple inner tubes if nothing else, for worst case scenario.

I don't think most anticipated the levy breach and felt they just had to get through the windstorm part, but the levy breach was always a possibility. I bet the same people this time are leaving early. I would be if I'd gone through something like the devastation and horror of Katrina. I'd have hightailed it.

But where do people go who have nobody and no money? I just don't know the answer. Where do the old people with nobody go? Maybe those Gulf states have lots of campgrounds up north too, where people can stay temporarily, like Oregon does. I've never been down there and I don't know the topography. My heart is with them as that killer storm approaches and I just hope for some reason, it peters out. That's right--falls in on itself, collapses.

If it hits New Orleans dead on, and the levees fail again, what will that mean for the future of the city, I wonder. Must be scary for the residents of the Gulf coast region. It's hard to start over again, and again. Well, I am keeping my fingers crossed for all of them down that way.

I got to thinking about this as a thunderstorm passed over my place here.

I also think it's stupid to live in a city below sea level on a coastline prone to hurricane strength storms. It's like saying "Disaster, come get me." It's like smoking, like climbing mountains for sport, like robbing banks. Everyone else: please pay for the consequences.

What's life without some risk, even if we just watch others take risks, from the safety of a couch? Safe? Boring?

More Notes on Palin Choice

Tom Brokaw was giggling like a school girl this morning, enamored with Sarah Palin and her home, which sports a sign that reads "Vegetarian is a native American word for Bad Hunter".

I don't like the wild west shoot em up image encouraged by reports after the John McCain pick of Sarah Palin.

With such a choice, the easy path of violence and conquest breathes easy. "We don't have to be anything but animals," is the breath of the wind, as people polish their guns and sigh.

If this planet were merely a jungle and we the dominant predator, the conquest and vanquish mentality works just fine.

What I find appalling and interesting is when the shoot em up/predator mentality pairs with super religion, as in the case with the image born of Sarah Palin.

One example: Vegetarianism is a healthy diet. Especially these days, when cows stand in knee deep mud and manure, eating grain, which is not something their five stomachs (made to process grass) can really handle, in massive feed lots, until their slaughter. The resulting beef is fatty and unhealthy. There is a morality issue to treating life in that manner, too, mostly ignored.

Tom Brokaw, stop your giggling and restart your brain.

Jesus Christ would not wander the earth plundering its resources, torturing its animals, guns hanging off his robes, conquering any perceived threat or weakness with a shower of bullets. I'm sorry, that image doesn't work for me, and is contrary to everything taught in the Bible.

Religion these days is bizarre in belief, espousing war, guns and shunning Biblical mandates, while beating people and politicians up with the Bible and claiming family values. Really, it is very funny, if you think about it.

One evangelical Christian candidate for President, Mike Huckabee, had a son who, with his friends, fellow boy scout camp councillors, tortured a stray dog to death, hanging the poor dog then beating it to death.

There are huge hypocrisies buried into the messages of religions. I don't pay attention to religious practitioners and crusaders anymore.

Sarah Palin may be a good person, but the spin has begun, pairing her prayer groups with a gun toting conquistador's image. The two lifestyles don't mesh without major efforts put into roundabout contorted justification. To pretend they do, is laziness, and an unwillingness to embrace reality.

So tote your guns and promote them, Sarah. But don't you quote the Bible to me. I'd break out in giggles like a school girl.

White Fang or Call of the Wild? Choose.

These two books are each a mish mash, however, of one another.

There is the option of taking nothing too seriously or rigidly. And I like that option.

Amazing. Scientists Work to Buy Planet Time.

I just watched an amazing show on Discovery about Scientists working on creative ways to create man made climate cooling, if need be.

One group worked on ways to seed the clouds or even just the atmosphere with microscopic salt particles, so small they rise, and, absorb water. They want to be able to do so from boats. The other team worked on developing a carbon neutral boat that could be operated remotely and deliver the particles to the atmosphere.

The particle group had trouble developing a method to deliver small enough particles, until they tried particle flares, used by climatologists who study clouds.

The other group stumbled when attempting to create a carbon neutral particle delivery boat. They found the design of a ship, powered by vertical rotors, created in the late 1920's. The rotors look like giant wind turbines, in a way. But the rotation is used to create movement, not power. The rotors extend upward from the boat's deck looking like tubes. The spin creates suction at the front, which propels forward, and push on the backside of the tube, also propelling the boat forward. They are electrically powered and also use natural wind to operate.

The vision is to use fleets of these boats, that suck in salt water, from the ocean, atomize the salt water and then deliver tiny salt particles into the lower atmosphere, that whiten clouds, increasing reflectivity of sun rays, lowering the temperature of the planet.

The second team located a recycled trimaran they modified to hold twin rotating towers. They made sure the vibration and weight of the rotor tubes was equally distributed to the three hulls, but had their doubts the boat hulls would withstand the vibration of the rotors when run at high rpms.

The first team rigged 300 salt flares to a boat, in South Africa, to attempt their part of the experiment. They wanted to prove salt particles, if shot from boats, would rise and reach the altitude of reflective cloud layers, between 200 and 300 feet.

Their experiment was put into jeopardy, however, because the day they chose, and they had only one day's use of the research plane, that would take readings at a variety of altitudes once the flares were shot off, there were no clouds in the sky off the coast. However, they decided they did not need clouds to prove the point, only the readings from the plane to determine if the particles in fact did rise to at least 200 feet after being fired off in flares from the boat.

Firing 300 salt particle flares from the special rack created on the boat produced a spectacular cloud of particles. And what happened, they rose, not just to 200 feet, but they formed a white cloud a mile long with substantial readings at even 300 feet. The scientists were jubilant. They proved seeding clouds was possible from boats and that the salt particles could reach appropriate altitude and collect moisture to form clouds where none existed. The research plane also noted the whiteness of the cloud created from above and measured its reflectivity.

The second part of the experiment, testing the rotor method of propelling a ship, also was successful. The boat achieved good rpms with no damage to the hull from vibration. Much larger ships would be needed as particle seeders.

The question left with viewers at the end of the show was a good one: We have proved we can mitigate earth's warming. Should we manipulate the Earth?

More Alaska Memories--a Friend is Shot to Death

Later on, in my Alaska years, which are a jumble really in memory, because of the all the traumas of my life I suppose, I ended up working at rest home in Seward. I never had a problem getting a job up there.

I think the restaurant had changed owners, not sure, can't remember clearly. I ended up managing the restaurant awhile, because the boss had a difficult time keeping reliable workers, due to drinking issues up there. And then she got cancer. I liked her a lot. I can't remember all the details.

I was deep in the mental health thing at this point, believed the professionals who told me I was nuts in Oregon, brought that belief to Alaska, but was trying to escape Oregon and my past in Alaska.

I'd ended up at API, Alaska Psychiatric Institute. There I met a messed up former Mormon, who had been in the military and been thrown out. I think he said he'd run naked through the Air Force base. Richie and I hit it off. He had money from a claim against the military, he said, and was going to buy a boat and live in it, at the small boat basin in Seward. He wanted me to live with him.

Richie was very kind to other patients at API, went out of his way to do anything he could for everyone.

I had this job in Seward in the laundry room at the rest home. I'd already been reprimanded by the big boss because I'd been seen "fraternizing" with one of the people who lived there, an old native named John. I'd encountered him at a local restaurant and sat with him while we both ate breakfast. I had no idea this was wrong or against rules at the rest home. It was an extremely small town and for gosh sakes, why couldn't we be friendly, even with residents many of whom freely roamed the town during the day. So my employment was in jeopardy, due to this incident.

The radio was on in the laundry room that day. The program was interrupted with breaking news. A former psych patient had attempted to hijack a plane and been shot dead by police. I believe at first they said he killed himself. But the truth was that the police shot him. The former pscyh patient shot dead was my friend Richie.

I was blown away by the news. With my employment already in jeopardy, I tried to show no emotion over the news of his death. Later on, however, I fell apart.

I heard from friends of his, whom I also knew, they had become nervous when he showed them guns he had, in his apartment in Anchorage. They'd called the police, but he'd taken off in the meantime. He drove to the airport and stormed a plane, let the passengers go, and was shot dead by police. They said he claimed he wanted to fly to Utah and set the Mormons straight on key issues. I could hardly disagree with a need for that but, of course, this was no way to reform the Mormons!

I knew Richie was very kind and that none of those passengers were ever in any danger. But the news made him out like a monster. Way later, I ran into someone who worked on the psyche ward in Corvallis at Good Same who used to live in Alaska. This man died suddenly in middle age of a massive heart attack. His wife, however, had worked at API during the time Richie was shot and killed. He told me way more went on, than was said in the papers, about Richie's death and the truth was never told the public, who wants to hear simplicity--'that a monster was shot by the police and everyone innocent was safe. Yahoo.'

This man said his wife raised concerns at API that the real truth be told the public, but nothing came of it. I believe part of this truth was that he did not kill himself, because I think the papers claimed that, but that the police shot him. For some reason, I already knew the police shot him, but the claim was made he killed himself. I didn't ask what the rest of the real truth was. I knew Richie was really a very kind person, so the reports in the paper I knew already were not the real truth of what likely occurred.

Loosing Richie hurt me, however. I have lost scores of friends over the years. Nine or maybe more have committed suicide.

Palin and The Smell of Bear

I have to admit I'm intrigued by Sarah Palin, probably because I lived up there in Alaska for a few years off and on, in my younger days. As I mentioned in previous posts, Alaska attracts extremists and isolationists, and a lot of people who hate government or any intrusion into what they want to do. It also attracts outdoorsmen, from hunters to hikers, to wildlife lovers, to pure adventurers.

I ended up in Alaska when I answered an ad in the OSU student newspaper for summer employment. I went up then to work in what was called the Minimall, which was basically a fast food and beer place in Seward. The ad said "room and board provided". "Room" turned out to be the basement of the restaurant owners house, a two bedroom apartment that between 12 and 14 employees shared. Talk about tight quarters. "Board" turned out to be food at the restaurant, which was far from healthy. We served everything from hamburgers and fries, to chicken and pizza. Some of the employees interpreted the "board" aspect as access to beer, more than food, and drank heavily. Many didn't last more than a couple of weeks for this reason.

Alaska has one big alcohol problem. This problem is exasperated by the long dark winters. Some of the people drawn to Alaska are drawn there because of the liberal pot laws, too. So, there are a lot of drug problems in Alaska as well.

One of the first acts I did, upon arrival, was to climb Bear Mountain, out off Lowell Point. I wanted to see the sun come up. At this point in June, the sun barely went down. There was about an hour of twilight and no true darkness. Lowell point extended out along the northern edge of Resurrection Bay with a narrow gravel road along the water, flanked by mountains on the other side. I used to walk the long way out to the point itself, that sported beaches along the bay front where one could watch the sea otters play. The sea otters all but disappeared from the edges of Resurrection Bay after the Exxon Valdez accident in SE Alaska. I don't know what the connection was, to the populations in Resurrection Bay, but obviously there was a connection.

Resurrection Bay is, if my memory is correct, nine miles long. There are at least three islands inside the bay. It is beautiful! Later, when I hooked up with a couple of transplanted Minnesotans, who had a Zodiac boat, we'd go out into Resurrection Bay and camp on the first island. Sometimes we would first buy some fresh shrimp off a boat in the boat basin and build a big campfire to cook it. One time, we watched a Humpback whale, from the Zodiac, repeatedly breach in the waters of the bay. That was glorious to watch.

My first year there, myself and another employee hooked up with a teacher from Anchorage who had bought a sailboat he intended to live on. We didn't know he had almost zero sailing experience when we went out onto the bay with him. The weather changed and the waves became large and wind high. He lost control of the sail and boom, which whipped around and smacked me in the head. I was injured and for months afterwards, had problems from that head injury. Once, when I climbed Little Marathon Mountain and laid down at the top, to take a rest, merely touching the side of my head to the ground, where the boom had hit me, caused spasms of pain throughout my head and body. But finally, my head injury seemed to heal and the pain subsided.

It was quite a frightening experience out there on the bay, in a small sailboat, no survival suits, no radio, with dangerously high wave action and winds. We thought we were going to die. We did not know if we would survive, but we did. We ended up on Lowell Point. I don't know if he ever sailed again. We never heard from him again.

Another time, I was hitchhiking back from Anchorage. I don't recall why I'd gone. I might have taken the train from Anchorage to Denali Park and was on my way back to work. I can't remember now it's been so long. A man picked me up. He told me he was picking me up to possibly save my life. Seems a serial killer/rapist was on the loose in the Anchorage area. He located his victims by picking up hitchhikers. I didn't hitchhike alone again after that. I did look it up to see if he was telling the truth and he was. I don't know if they ever caught that killer.

Halfway to Seward the man said he was really going fishing on the Kenai for King Salmon and if I would spot for him, afterwards he'd take me all the way to Seward. He needed a bear spotter. If you're salmon fishing along the rivers in Alaska, you do need someone to watch your back for bears, who often would rather take a fish from a fisherman than fish themselves. It's easier.

So, I agreed to this. Unfortunately, the man did hook into a King, but got pulled into the river over the tops of his high waders, which then filled with water. He tumbled into deeper water. I thought he was done for. I ran along the banks looking for anything I could throw to him, or a long branch I could use to help him to shore. Finally, he got to shore, and was understandably freezing, shaking violently. We got into his truck and turned the heater on high. He got out of most of his wet clothes. I gave him my wool sweater to put on and my wool socks and hat, which I always had with me when adventuring in Alaska. I drove. At the apartment in Seward, I gave him some of my clothes and someone else gave him some of theirs. I never heard from him again. He was shook up by the experience.

Well anyhow, back to the first part of the story. Another worker and I, when fresh and green in Alaska, decided to climb Bear Mountain, hoping to watch the sun go down and rise again, all in the space of an hour, from above treeline on Bear Mountain. We didn't consider the mountain's given name might be meaningful.

I had a .44 magnum with me, for protection. It was in my backpack. I got the gun and learned to shoot it despite its fearsome kick that could cut a person between the thumb and index finger. I was a good shot. My mother would cringe when I reloaded cartridges in my bedroom, thinking I was going to blow everybody up. One had to learn to reload because the cartridges cost up to a dollar apiece if bought new.

I remember when I flew off to Alaska. I had the gun in my suitcase as required and declared it. But I didn't know ammo had to be new and in the original box. I had reloaded bullets in ziplock bags. When they asked about ammo, I told them honestly about the bullets, being in ziplock bags. They said I couldn't take them that way, so, with time running out in catching that plane, we took them out of my suitcase, which was then approved for checking, and mother put them in her purse. I had gone through the security to the gate to board the flight. Last minute, mother wanted to say goodbye. She told me later she never expected to see me again. She thought I'd be killed up in Alaska somehow. She wanted to see me one last time, she told me, and imprint my face in her memory.

So she could not take the bullets through to the boarding gate of course. And they wouldn't hold them for her at the checkpoint. So she dumped them into a metal ashtray at the entrance of the boarding gate and ran on through to tell me goodbye. Today, an act like that would be enough to close an airport and brand a mother a terrorist.

We climbed a rocky steep trail, over downed logs and huge rocks, higher and higher, through twilight, up towards timberline. I was slightly on edge, wondering if this was really safe, in big bear country.

We achieved timberline and took a break, sitting on a log, eating peanut butter sandwiches, another bad decision since the odor of peanut butter is pungent and penetrating. The spruce trees here were not tall, just spindly sticks basically, as are most trees in Alaska, whose root systems are shallow due to permafrost.

Suddenly, we hear what sounds like a freight train, coming at us. I froze in complete terror, but somehow found myself high up a skinny spruce. The coworker sat, glued to the log, eyes wide in terror. We had angered a bear. A HUGE bear. I never even remembered I had a gun in my pack. That was a good thing.

The angry bear stood up, a couple dozen feet away, snorting and looking back a forth with its' head, in kind of a rocking motion, like it couldn't really see us. We threw the peanut butter sandwiches and a grapefruit at him. I was so frightened I crapped my pants. My heart was literally pounding out of my chest. We couldn't see that well in the twilight, couldn't make out if he was still there or gone. We stared back and forth at each other, with wide eyes, not moving, not even daring to breath. We didnt' know anything about what to do if we encountered a bear at close quarters in the dark. We didn't know if he was gone or still there or very close by, lurking, waiting. There was all this brush and trees and the vagueness of trying to make out shapes in twilight. What should we do?

In the end, almost simultaneously, we bolted. But not back down that trail we'd come up, that he'd come up, too, then disappeared back down. Hell no we weren't going back down that way. We went down the cliff side, in record time, no trail either. We just plunged downward and getting down this way, in terror, took less than half the time we'd taken climbing up the trail.

We burst back into our workplace, which was open 24 hours, still pumping with adrenaline. Someone said, "What happened?" "Bear," we muttered. They thought we'd been attacked because we were cut up and bleeding, but that was from the shale and rocks we'd encountered coming down the cliff side.

That was an interesting introduction to Alaska. I had nightmares for about five years featuring that bear. And I never forgot the smell of bear. This served me well. I could identify a bear in the area within a mile, if the wind was right. The smell was imprinted soundly into my brain.

Atom and Luke, No Longer Barn Cat Material

The last boys, both blue, from the Kitten Yard colony are no longer barn cat material. They've decided to be tame boys. I called them Atom and Last Kitten Standing, the latter name given because he was the last kitten needing caught in that yard of 14 kittens. LKS for short. Now I've shortened the name to "Luke". So it's Atom and Luke needing homes now.

As for the three Starvation Kids, I've named the littel black and white boy "Hungry" but am still up in the air over names for the brown tabby on whites, a boy and a girl. Sami, the pneumonia girl, is doing well, still over eating, due to her own struggle with starvation at her prior situation, but she'll settle down to normal patterns I"m sure. Sami is completely tame while Hungry and his siblings I am still working on.Atom and Luke, Atom in the back.
The blue boys again.
Two of the Starvation Kids, the two I have not yet named, one boy, one a girl.
Girl of the Starvation Three from the BS Dead Car Field.
Sami, the pneumonia girl from the Elm street district of Albany.

Saturday, August 30, 2008

False Teeth in Albany Water Canal

This is just one reason I am squeamish about drinking Albany city water, that travels through miles and miles of open sluggish canal, once leaving the Santiam River near Lebanon, headed for the Albany water system. Just one reason. The other is the extreme chlorination rates, necessitated by such antics as below, common to water supplies delivered in open gunky canals. On a brighter note, Albany water costs residents more than water in most other Oregon cities! Pay your bill with a smile! And don't drink the water you pay dearly for! Just a healthy living tip!

Albany police

Cleaning teeth — Police got a call at 3:18 a.m. Friday about someone splashing in the Santiam Albany Canal near Canal Avenue S.E.

In the water officers found an intoxicated man, who told them that he had been washing his false teeth in the canal when he fell in and couldn’t get out. Officers helped the 43-year-old man out of the water and gave him a blanket. According to a police log, the man became angry after realizing he had lost the teeth.

Knife call — Police responded Thursday morning to a home in the 1200 block of Elm Street S.W. after getting a call about a woman with a kitchen knife. Police spoke with the woman and a man, who said they were playing around and no one was concerned about getting hurt. The woman did admit to being a little upset at the man for breaking a couple of her fake fingernails, according to a police report.


Well anyhow, that was from the crime report.

I've had a series of setbacks again. Lonliness is a huge one. But, constant exhaustion is another. I know what causes the exhaustion, outside of stress, and that's trying to sleep here, with cats in the house. I am constantly awakened, probably 15 or more times each night, with cats knocking things over, having brief tifts in play, jumping on me, or running across me in bed, or, Deaf Miss Daisy deciding nights' a good time to play and she plays LOUDLY, due to her inability to regulate tone.

So I never really get a decent nights sleep. I don't know how to remedy this. Locking the cats out of the bedroom doesn't stop the noise and would increase Miss Daisys loud deaf yowls of protest. I can't wear earplugs because I take them out immediately, in my sleep. I don't know what to do, but it's like torture, to just get to sleep, then wake again.

IN other news, my only source of exercise, mowing my lawn with my muscle powered mower, is gone. I gave in to the old man's repeated requests to mow my lawn. There's no saying no to him. I thought we had it all worked out, that I would take care of my lawn and he his, but he got his feelings seriously hurt when I told him he couldn't be taking care of my lawn anymore. (due to a lot of criticism he handed me and the fact I like mowing my lawn with my muscle powered mower for exercise).

He doesnt' understand I have to let the lawn get up to three inches at least before that mower of mine will cut it. He likes to cut lawns butch, barely showing grass above dirt afterwards. Shaving them almost. I gave in today. And I'm already kicking myself. The neighbors all think I'm a loser, because I use that old mower, and think he's a saint for mowing it for me with his motor mower. I'm supposed to act grateful and all I am is frustrated to beat the band.

I'm a mess here, no way I can find to get exercise, unable to get sleep, unable to do anything days because I didn't get any real sleep at night and I have figure out some solution to all this, because my life has gone to the dogs with no end in sight. I need to get out of here.

I may go back to one of those options still open, of housing for labor. It's better than things staying the same here. Things are getting worse for me here. My health is going down the drain since moving here and I've been rather severely depressed, too.

I'm taking my car in next week. Don't when yet, or exactly how, since my mechanic is miles from anywhere and does not offer shuttle service. I might be walking most of the day, whichever day it will be. He wanted me to call on Monday, because he wasn't clear on his schedule and now I'll be trapping Monday evening in Marion. I am still hoping to find a ride, someone to follow me to the mechanics and give me a ride home, and then back out in the evening. Otherwise, it's about a ten mile walk home one way. No bus service out there either.

I did find out the timing chain replacement is not needed service, it's as needed, when you hear a rattle on cold start under the hood, it is time to get it changed, is what the dealership told me. I was happy to hear that, because the list price online for replacement is close to $700.

I hear something under the hood on start but I would not describe it is a rattle, more like a metallic whang. It might be one of the belts slipping with wear. It isn't the normal wet belt scream, when you start the car, and it's rained in the night and the belt might be slightly loose, but it might be wearing belt. They look ok to me, except slightly worn flat and shiney. They don't feel like they have any play to them, which is good.

The car has multiple issues but some may not need addressed.

I've got some strut issues. The car has a serious side to side rock, at normal highway speeds. With the right tools available or borrowed, I have changed struts before. One needs a torque wrench and a spring compressor and a decent jack and ramps.

I used to have a decent jack and ramps, but no more. They disappeared in the move. I do not have a torque wrench or spring compressor. I used to have both, but somehow in the move, those things also disappeared. One can use really strong C-clamps however, if need be, in leui of a spring compressor, I hear. You do have to be careful, those springs are powerful and can break wrists or worse.

Struts are expensive and installation is really expensive. That's why I learned how to do it myself, but now I've got the tool issue.

I need brakes done and this also is not a difficult task. I should do that myself at least.

What I"m not good at, is bleeding the brake lines alone. Not good at doing that alone. One little trick I learned, is putting a golf tee into the line, to minimize fluid loss and air bubbles after disconnecting it. They work perfect as plugs. This isn't an issue when replacing pads, just calipers.

Radiator system needs flushed and the radiator checked for dings and leaks. Transmission fluid and filter need changed. I need a new battery, too. And I"ve got a problem with the ignition.

I suppose the air conditioner needs recharged. That's no issue now, however, with winter coming on.

The CD player is in the process of quiting, but I don't really need a CD player in my car. The player has skipped since get go. I wish I'd known it is an issue with that year of Scion and maybe I could have had it replaced for free then. I figured it was scratched CD's. I don't have many CD's, all home made, given to me, made by people I know from theirs. So it'd start skipping after a few songs would play and I just always figured it was the CD, then I find out it isn't and that it was an issue with that year of Scion. But I found that out too late to be any use to me. But lately it not only skips but suddenly will shut off or one speaker will start roaring and then it will shut down.

I know how to replace the CD player in a car too, have done that. You just buy the wiring tree at a sound sytem store, and there's really nothing to replacing the player. But, they aren't cheap either.

And I haven't heard any ticking sounds, when turning, like axle bearings going dry. I tried checking the axle boots for holes and didn't see any, but it's hard to check them without jacking up the car for a good look. I knew this one guy who had a grease pump rigged to like a big syringe and he'd inject grease into the axle through the boot, with that syringe, so as not to make a hole big enough for the grease to leak out of.

So the car is going in to be checked out by a mechanic I trust. A 60 point check up. Then he'll tell me what needs done and I'll decide what needs done that I can afford getting done and that will get done. I hope the steering rods and everything are ok, too. They'll check engine compression and everything like that, give it a good check out. It's got over a hundred thousand miles on it and has had zero maintenance except for the oil changes I give it.

All I have to do is figure out the ride back once I drop it off and then to pick it up again. That shouldn't be too hard, you'd think.

I tried getting a Chilkoot manuel on the car, so I could do repairs easier, just following the manuel instructions, but according to the Auto parts store I checked with and they looked it up, it isn't out yet. They don't put them out until somewhere after the car's been out five years, he said, which is this year. So he said keep checking back that it should be out and available on this model real soon.

Those manuels are worth every penny. Makes it so easy for a non-mechanic like msyelf to do routine maintenance, some stuff fairly complicated, by just following instructions. They have pictures, too. I love them.

Radiators now are also targets for metal theives. I read radiators on two farm vehicles got stolen a few days ago. It's not enough they go after catalytics, now they're after people's radiators, too. These no good theives are costing people so much heartache and money.

The people in the house with the junk yard where Sammy comes from, they got set way back when the woman's husband had his catalytic convertor stolen off his vehicle at the park and ride on Highway 34. He carpools to work in Salem. Replacing it cost them $700. They used money they'd set aside to replace their failing roof. Now that won't get done.

Presidential Race This Year Spectacularly Entertaining

The Presidnetial race is gloriously entertaining, although the twisty whiney soap opera could lead to real trouble down the road, when one of these folks actually ends up in the oval office, directing world affairs and with access to nuclear weapons.

The hot tempered McCain has chosen a much younger woman, two years younger than Obama, as running mate, trumping Obama's "young guy" with "younger gal".

Will voters believe "young half black guy" card trumps "young gun toting gal" card? That's left to be seen.

Personally, I believe if you're playing VP pick cards, that definitely the "young angry gun toting gal" card trumps the "loud mouth geezer white guy has been" card of Joe Biden.

I don't get the word African American anyhow. If you are born in America, aren't you just American, period? The term African American to me denotes dual citizenship. Am I supposed to call myself a "Welsh, Cherokee, Irish, English, French, German American"? To be correct? Why do people call Obama black when he's half white and half black? Whatever white means. Means usually a mixture of whole bunches of origins. Probably like black means. What if someone is black but like from Jamaica origins or some other continent. I bet it's an insult then to be called African American. I just don't know the protocols anymore. It's far too complicated for me.

Anyhow, Palin lives in Alaska, too. Now that's interesting. Go read the book "Going to Extremes" and you'll know what I mean.

I lived in Alaska. Alaska is beautiful. It is also a magnet for extremists and "characters" of all sorts. I'm a "character" and I suppose that's why I was drawn to live there. It's dark a lot of the time up there. Yup. 24 hours of darkness at times during the year.

The gun toting corruption hating mother of five, including a Down's syndrome baby, once asked "What the hell does a Vice President do? I'm used to being productive and how the hell does a VP spend their day?"

Actually, that's a really good question.

I think Cheney spent his days as VP actually running the country.

The Dems as usual are playing things stupid this election. When the "experience" issue came up, prior to the convention, not sure why they didn't just retort, "Wait a minute. Are you serious? I mean, you are the people who nominated George Bush, who had to hire tutors before he ran for a crash course in how the U.S. government works."

Bill Clinton is pouty as ever and is still showing his distaste over the wife's loss to Obama. Bill so wanted his penis available to serve again in the oval office.

He better keep things zipped around Sarah or risk getting something shot off. I wonder if he'll start calling out her name in his sleep.

As a general rule, I would say the Republicans are less sexist than the Democrats. Maybe less racist too. If the Democrats want to win, they must have a very specific message of change, short, sweet, well defined, because I am unable to come up with what the Democrats stand for.

I know what the Repubs say they stand for, not that they really do, but at least I know what they say they stand for: family values, whatever those are, because I have not seen family values exhibited by Republicans in office or in private life any more so than people of other faiths, oops I meant party affiliation exhibit. I define family values as honesty, fairness, personality responsibility, work ethic, you know that sort of thing.

Repubs say they stand for fiscal responsibility in government and private sector. Yeah right. That's a good one. They're the party of big spenders currently, who have driven us into unspeakable debt. And the third thing I think of that Repubs stand for is small government, which I'm all for, small and highly efficient. However, government has grown under Republicans.

What I'm saying is, at least I know the three major mantras of the Republicans, none of which they really act on. But when I think of Democrats, I have no idea what they even claim to believe in.

Come on, Dems, give us some spin on that. If I had to try to think of something, I'd have to say abortion rights and homosexual rights. The democratic party will not win an election in front of an empty plate.

They have exhibited the "we stand for nothing and have no backbone" philosophy very well, in the last couple years they've enjoyed a majority in the House.

This election is vastly interesting. It's hard for me to see Geezer McCain and Sarah Palin together. I don't know why. Maybe it's because I still don't think most men are capable of respecting a woman as an equal. Or, to put it simply, not thinking of a woman first with their penis, when standing in close proximity.

That's why I think the perfect running mates would be a gay man and a lesbian woman. Now that would be such a fun election, especially if one of the two was a native American, following Buddha, and the other an Irish Omish.

The Merkeley/Smith race for Senate here in Oregon has certainly created a buzz. They are both fixated on office furniture. That's real nice. But, I don't want either of them representing me in the Senate. I'm writing in my name in protest of their school kid furniture face off childishness.

The Repubs have run down our country, making stupidity fashionable, politicizing and mocking science, heralding pro-life values, while blasting up several countries, declaring corruption, greed and dishonesty family values, and sending us into debt I can't even fathom.

The democrats scream "change" while sitting placidly in congress like blow up dolls. Sure, I wish there was a third choice, some sock it to you straight forward fiscally responsible no nonsense person or party who would weed out the waste and corruption in government, battening down the hatches, while a diplomatic stand out on foreign affairs tap dancing. Ross Perot comes to mind.

But we don't have such people running. I'd like to see Obama swing towards reality and he might be doing that. McCain is too close to senility for reality. But it will be an interesting sprint to the finish, that's for sure.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Wreck on the Bridge

Click post title to go to photo of wreck on bridge today. I was right behind these two huge pieces of farm equipment as they went across the bridge into Albany. Except there was a white pickup with blinking lights behind them, and I was behind that pickup. The pickup with the blinking lights was a slow vehicle warning flag car to get traffic to notice the upcoming tractors I guess, when they were on the main highway with highway speeds.

Suddenly I hear a big clang and see a slight puff of smoke go up from the front hay lifter. One of them had started bouncing, going too fast, the one in front, and hit the bridge girder. His front tire bounced right up onto the sidewalk of the bridge after the main part of the tractor hit that girder. Yes, they were going too fast on that narrow bridge traffic lane. Just when he started down the slope into town, that's when the bouncing began. Probably trying to slow down for the light at the intersection at the bottom and realized he was bouncing too fast.

Not that the cars trying to get around them were going the speed limit either. They weren't.

I was behind them and instead of trying to go around them, in the right lane, like almost everybody else, I figured why bother, since the speed limit over the bridge is 25 mph and even the farm trackers were exceeding it. So fortunately, right after the wreck, I was able to get into the right lane and around them before the big scene of tow trucks and cops arrived.

It was a young looking kid driving it. I thought to myself, 'Well, one day he can tell his grandkids how he hit the bridge.' Be a good story, although on the boring side, as stories go. He'll need to dress it up some.

Also in the news, I committed big booboo by responding to a Eugene woman, hired by someone to run real short free feral cat fixing clinics, I think at Greenhill. They got some grants, apparently enough to hire someone to I don't know, make the appointments or organize rounding up the cats, not sure what this persons' job will entail. I just e-mailed her telling her if she wanted to hire a trapper, since they have money to fix ferals free now down there, to let me know.

She e-mailed back, apparently misunderstanding, wanting my contact info to put on a list of resources for I guess the people of Eugene, who need ferals trapped. Woohooo what a big booboo on my part. That's all I need, eh? Eugene and Springfield people demanding I help them too. Private people feeding strays dont' pay a trapper, time and transport, ok? DUH! But, they will call up here demanding I come trap their cats, and say I'm supposed to do it because my name is on a list. I know how that works.

I quickly e-mailed back the feral clinic paid worker, because she obviously misunderstood my offer. I told her again clearly I am available for hire as a trapper, but only to groups.

I was thinking, why not pay cat trappers? I mean, by the cat. If we spay/neuter trappers even got paid $5 per cat, then to just take them to a clinic that would do anything we brought in, I could trap 20 a day easy, make a hundred bucks a day. Of course many days would be taken up just locating and sorting out colonies, so you wouldn't make that much overall probably.

But it'd be something, a way to earn a living doing it, instead of giving myself a way, like the slave I am now.

Everybody else gets paid. Shelter workers. Nonprofit directors, the bigger ones. Shelter directors and managers. Animal control. Why not us? We're doing massive good for cats and communities--even taking loads off shelters by reduding numbers humanely, and everybody gets paid who works at shelters. We should be paid, too. We shouldn't be just slaves, solving cat problems caused by the problematic people of our world, for the rest of society, for nothing, because we care. I mean, come on. We should be paid. We're doing valuable work.

Ideally, clinics would be available to fix feral and low income cats at no cost. And trappers should be paid to go out and locate cats, feral or, as I like to call them, scarcely owned tame cats, bring them in and collect pay to do it. Hell yes.

Here's a funny note on that vein. Nick, the local FCCO coordinator, went around trying to find vets to volunteer for the clinic. Some Albany vets refused, stating they felt the FCCO was taking away business from them. I asked Nick if he just broke out laughing. Because it's hysterical.

95% of the owned tame cats I round up to take to be fixed, through Poppa funds or other grants, have never ever seen a vet and never will again. 95% of the tame owned cats I encounter NEVER have seen a vet and never will again. The only chance they might get to see a vet, after I take them in for spay, is because I hound these "owners" about getting them routine vaccinations, worming and checkups at a vet.

Wrap your heads around that, vets of Oregon.

Hard World for Cats, as Seen Through Craigslist Ads

"Date: 2008-08-29, 3:50PM PDT

four-year old male, beautiful siamese cat with gorgeous blue eyes does not get along with new puppy. he needs a good home. he is loving and healthy."

"Baby Kittens Need New Homes (albany )
Date: 2008-08-28, 12:24PM PDT

baby kittens will be ready for new homes in 3 weeks
we have baby kittens we have 8 boys and girls 5 of them are simease with baby blue eyes that are just so cute. and the other 3 are just as cute. e-mail and come and get first pick! there will be a 25.00 re-homing fee for each kitten, with will be the cost of de-fleeing them and de-worming them ect... "


"Date: 2008-08-29, 11:48AM PDT

Are you looking for a fun loveing kitten? I have 5 of them. These kitten's are litter trained and have been raised with my kids and our lab. They are 7 1/2 wks. We have a all black female, a black and white female, a short haired striped female, a long haired striped female, and one striped male. If your interested please contact me."

"free beautiful white cat blue eyes loves small dogs and kids! (albany)
Date: 2008-08-29, 8:23AM PDT
Snowflake is a sweet cat that likes to be in the house and loved on she adores my pug if you have any questions email me if you want to see her call me."

"Free spayed outdoor cat (Lebanon)
Date: 2008-08-29, 7:49AM PDT
free spayed outdoor cat- were moving and need to find her a home."

"Free Calico Female (Albany)
Date: 2008-08-28, 7:24PM PDT

Caf'fe is a year old, hand raised cat. Her mother lived on our farm and when she gave birth, she was fixed and released on the farm but the kittens were kept and hand raised.
Well, things change, as do situations and we are moving out of state. It took some thinking and we really have to let her go to a new home, as well as our lab. The distance is too far, and we can't take all of the animals.
If you like independent, cats who aren't into cuddling too much, but love to be petted then she is for you. Strictly indoors only as she has NEVER been outside in her life.
Not fixed and has all claws."

"Cats desperately needing barn homes (Albany)
Date: 2008-08-28, 4:45PM PDT
Cats at a Philomath location just keep breeding and their people are not caring for them. The cats will be removed by volunteers and spay/neutered. They need barn homes. There are two recent litters making the total count about 20. Please pass the word and email us if you know anybody who can give these cats a country home where they will be fed."

"Lilac Tipped Siamese 4mos old Needs Loving Home Please Help!. (Philomath)
Date: 2008-08-28, 1:20PM PDT
Lilac Tipped Siamese Kitten. 4 mo old kitten, Male, neutered with all tests and shots. Healthy and gorgeous. He has had a bit of a rough start so he is a little guarded but has warmed to me. I would keep him for sure but I already have 3 cats. The litter he belonged to was born under my house so I fed them and mom. There were 5 but unfortunately 2 kittens and mom were killed. I have given one a home and have a home for the other. Blue (or boo boo) as I call him (he answers to either Blue, Boo or Boo Boo)is the only one I haven't found a home for. I knew everyone else who adopted the others. I have a hard time giving him away on craigslist so I will want to know that he is going to an excellent caring home. He will adjust to other cats, I am not sure about dogs (i doubt it) He needs love, holding and reasurance but he would make a wonderful pet. I have made sure he had all the needed medical care so you would not have to do that. It is just important to me that he goes to a loving home! thanks please contact me if you are interested."

"6-week-old indoor kittens (Shedd)
Date: 2008-08-27, 6:56PM PDT

Would you like the pick of the litter? Reserve your kitten now and we will let you know when they are weaned. We are located in Shedd and are home most of the time. Come see and fall in love."

"Furry little girls
Date: 2008-08-25, 6:09PM PDT

(PLEASE DO NOT FLAG MY ADD)
These girls have every right to find a great home ! You are just stopping that from happening! I have three sweet little girls that need to go to ao great home! We dont have the room to take in any more. I got the ones I have keep fixed and I just cant do any more! I have down sized a bit all ready and need to find these three girls a nice home and two older females that I have rescued. These kittens and adult cats are not fixed! They need to get fixed A.S.A.P. I just hate when as soon as I find homes for these lovely kittens someone else feels the need to dump off more at my door. I have found homes for 6 of the kittens and 2 dogs I need to find homes for the rest of these cute little girls! Please if you think you have room in your heart and home cal me or contact me through this add."

"Kittens SOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE!! (Alsea)
Date: 2008-08-25, 11:40AM PDT

I have 5 kittens that are 6 weeks old and will be able to be adopted on the 12th of September. there are 2 orange with stripes 1 boy and 1 girl. 2 that are gray with black stripes and 1 boy and 1 girl. one white male cat with orange ears and orange strips on his tail.

E-mail me if you are interested or have any questions.

adoption fee"

Here are a few of the free kitten ads from today in the paper:

Free Kittens 8 weeks & older. Tabby stripe, black and black & white. Call (541) 250-9375
Posted Aug 29, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Free: 2 black & white 8 wk old female kittens to give away to a good home. Call (541) 926-1004
Posted Aug 27, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Free Cats & Kittens in Philomath 541-497-7581
Posted Aug 27, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Free Purr Babes! Fixed, too! Ready to love you! Need homes. 926-3508.

Cute 7 wk old male
$15.00 Cute 7 wk old male kittens, 3 part Siamese, 1 black, $15 each. (541) 990-9312.
Posted Aug 25, 2008 under Pets - Cats

FREE Kittens to good home. (541) 929-7234
Posted Aug 23, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Free: 6 kittens, 6 to 8 wks old, mostly black & gray striped, calico, & white. (541) 754-6311; 908-4035
Posted Aug 23, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Breeder below, as if there aren't enough cats, including Himalayans and Persians:
Himalayan Persian Kittens 2 Flame
$100.00 Himalayan Persian Kittens 2 Flame pt. 3 Seal pt. $100. (541) 327-8083
Posted Aug 22, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Another backyard Breeder:
SIAMESE KITTENS love 2 purr,
$75.00 SIAMESE KITTENS love 2 purr, very tame & sweet $75. 541-928-0770
Posted Aug 22, 2008 under Pets - Cats

FREE 1 year old Male cat Call (541) 497-7581
Posted Aug 21, 2008 under Pets - Cats

Rental Store Calls about Marion Cats

In an interesting twist this morning, I got a call from a equipment rental store. A Marion man was looking to rent traps to trap 13 cats he feeds. The rental store man felt for this disabled guy in Marion, and wanted to help him. The man wanted the cats gone, however. I told the rental store man I couldn't take on anymore cats, however, I would be willing to help trap and fix the cats, if they could be returned.

The rental store man, Gregg I think his name is, said he would let me know. Pretty soon, the Marion man calls me. He's a jovial old guy. He asked if I could trap them and then he could take them to the Humane Society in Salem. I said I don't trap cats for killing and that is what would happen to them, if taken to a Humane Society, which seems so wrong, if you think about it, that a Humane Society would just kill healthy cats.

I told him I am a cat lover and just can't do that. He said "Well, so am I." I told him the other option, of just getting them fixed, and feeding them. He said he'd think about it. He called me back and said he decided on the latter option. So I said I'd come trap the first half dozen Monday evening. He doesn't live very far from my Jefferson vet clinic.

I forgot to get the name of the equipment rental store, because that is outstanding behavior by whomever this person is, first, to want to help this man out, and second to try to find a humane option for him, too. Very cool!

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Sashi's Gone. Latest Barn Home for Last Two Kitten Yard Kittens Falls Through

I miss Sashi already. She was such a darling, so beautiful. Also, the two gray boys still here, from the Vanman Kitten Yard Colony, had their latest barn home offer fall flat. I don't know what to do with these two. They are wild. Maybe I should just take them back to the trailer park.

All five cats I ended up taking to be fixed today were females. Two were pregnant, the Siamese I took up late, and the tabby from Doomsday Millersburg. Actually, a friend in Corvallis is taking the tabby in. THANK YOU DIANE. The other female from Millersburg Doomsday, a feral, was in heat, but not pregnant. That tabby is one lucky kitty. No longer will she live beneath a trashed out trailer that is now being demolished for removal. She'll have a live, a chance.

I would like to be optimistic about the Doomsday colony, and believe those two women, who are very nice, will find them all homes before it's too late. Then I'd just get them all fixed. And maybe I should just get them fixed, so they won't reproduce further, at least, before they lose their home. Is it better to get them fixed and reduce the number of deaths later? I try to use such events to propel involved parties to action themselves, to save them, but this rarely works.

I still have the three Starvation Kids, Robinhood and Sammy, the little pneumonia girl. That's enough to deal with here. I don't need to add two feral boys to the mix also.

I already have here: Electra, my elderly feral tabby, originally from Silverton; Vision, my elderly Willamette river cat, the last of the river cats; Dex, the elderly thrice rescued female, orginally from who knows where, then taken in by a Corvallis collector, rescued from her by a pair of scam rescuers whom I had to rescue her from. Those three cats of mine are all elderly.

Then I have Deaf Miss Daisy, who is now 6 years old. Time flies. Just yesterday it seems like, she came to me. Actually it was the year 2003, five years ago. She's already six years old.

How could that be?

I have Cattyhop and Comet. I have the two tortis, Poppy and Gretal. I have the three teens Brambles from HTN, Shady from the BS and Mooki, from Spicer Wayside. All these are cats I took in as kittens, CAttyhop from a colony on 226, Comet, among 16 kittens I took in when trying to fix Heatherdale Trailer park the first time, Brambles, from HTN, because his eye was too inflamed to turn back there, Shady from BS, because she had pneumonia and I just couldn't take her back after she was fixed, sick like that, and Mooki was among six cats I trapped for an old woman feeding strays off Spicer, whose daughter said she'd help me find homes for the three boys, begging me not to return them because her old mother fed too many, she said. Well none of them ever helped find the three boys homes. I finally found Machi and Meeko homes, but not Mooki. Promises, promises, eh?

Boy I get in trouble trying to help cats. Sure, I'm still trying to find all these cats homes, except Dex, Miss Daisy, Vision and Electra, the four I consider my own, three of them so elderly they likely will not last another year.

As if the above numbers are not enough, I also have Panda and Solomon from Lebanon, two of four kittens I trapped at the request of SafeHaven. A worker there had a relative feeding them. They said they fed four. I trapped 11 and they were barely feeding them. Loser they were. Big time. SafeHaven said they'd help me adopt them out. They never did. I still have Panda and Solomon.

And I have the one eyed Stinod, from the Grand Prairie colony, the tattoed up man, with the medical mary jane card, who just isn't "there" mentally anymore, smokes too much weed I think. He has intent to engage in life, but he can't and never will unless he gets off the weed. I trapped about twenty cats he fed on his porch, with the minimum effort possible, tearing open a bag of cat food and throwing it down. It was too sad. He kept telling me he would return the "blessing" of all the free help I gave him, many fold. I'd hear him tell that to friends he was talking to on his cell phone too. He never did a damn thing in return. A blowhard, a talk man, not an action person. Full of hot air. He'd let Stinod, whom he called his favorite, suffer with that horrendous eye for six months, watched. Why? I think because he was so impaired on pot, nothing really registered. So Stinod now without one eye, and with limited Vision in the other, is here. And she has buddied up with Shady, the prankster from BS.

Is that enough cats to care for? I think it is. Plenty.

Electra, Miss Daisy, Vision, Dex, Comet, Cattyhop, Shady, Mooki, Brambles, Gretal, Poppy, Panda, Solomon, Stinod. 14 Cats.

Add in the latest I'm desperately trying to rehome: Robinhood, the Waverly duplex male. Atom and Last Kitten Standing, the gray feral boys from the Kitten Yard. The three Starvation Kids. And little Sammy, the pneumonia girl. That is seven more. 21 in all.

Consider I keep every cat here up to date on everything, even dentals. Then you know what kind of expense I look at. I'm lucky. The cats here are happy, content, play a lot, get along, because I don't tolerate malcontent or fighting. Fighting here is met with swift consequences. Everybody knows what happens when there is fighting. Time outs. Squirt bottles. And probably worse than all of those, shunning. I shun the fighters after some stern looks and words. I shun them. They even get shut out of the bedroom at night, where all the fun is, the laser pointer games right before I go to sleep, the grooming and flea combing. They don't like that and soon are doing everything they can to make sure I know they will not be fighting anymore.

21 cats here right now. Sammy won't last, once she's fixed. She's a lover girl and somebody will adopt her, I think. As for the Starvation Kids, who knows on them what their fate will be. Robinhood, he's a winner, if I can get someone interested in an adult male.

The wild cards are Atom and Last Kitten Standing.

I miss Sashi, but I am glad she got a home. I don't need more cats here.

I've had a lot through here. I remember the 16 orange tabbies from that one Lebanon situation. I had most of them in my bathroom for quite awhile! I remember the 16 cats abandoned up on the other side of Lebanon, in Ty Valley. That was stressful too, getting them all caught and into homes, within a week. The 18 kitten yard cats, too, all caught within a week. I had a lot of cats in my bathroom once again.

The seven Shedd kittens. The four kittens and their mom from Highway 34...the list goes on and on and on.....

The Cat Gods Own Me

Today, once again, the cat gods manipulated my life so I could serve another cat.

The Albany Trailer Park woman needed flea treatment for the cats fixed Wednesday. She lives in a little fifth wheeler. I took in four cats from her Wednesday.

I got delayed by the trains this morning, which was irritating. I had to be back after delivering the cats to the vet, by 9:15, in order to meet the woman adopting Sashi and Suku. Suku is the silver torbi four week old from the canal district yard. This is a great responsible home for both girls. I was also going to stop by the trailer park with the flea treatment. I thought I had time. I didn't.

I had to come straight home to meet the adopter. I sure didn't want to mess that up. I will miss Sashi greatly. It was hard to see her go. She was staring at me, as she left, in the woman's carrier, like I'm Satan for sending her away.

I felt horrible.

So, upset, sad, I decided I better just get going and go pay those bills I've been ignoring too long and deliver the flea treatment to the trailer park woman.

I got there and gave her the flea treatment. But then, I suddenly really needed to use a bathroom. She said they have public restrooms there, and even showers. Off I went to the little peeling paint blue trimmed concrete block restroom. I was within a few feet of the door, when my sandal caught on the speed bump in the pavement. I almost caught myself before hitting the ground. I almost got that other leg out front of me to prevent the crash. But I didn't.

I went down hard. I did manage to turn slightly so as not to slam face first into asphalt. My bad right shoulder and arm hit first, followed immediately by the side of my head. But, I didn't hit asphalt. The cat gods had something else in mind with this further delay. I hit on the side of the asphalt in a two foot by two foot space of bark mulch my legs laying over the bright yellow speed bump. Hahahaha.

Everything had conspired together, coordinated actually, for what happened next. I went to the bathroom, limped back to the 5th wheeler, beside which my car was parked, and glanced to the left, between my car and the 5th wheeler, as I was dusting off the bark mulch stuck to my clothes and hair.

I saw a Siamese sitting on the steps of the trailer beyond--a pregnant Siamese.

I asked the woman who needed the flea treatment, "So who is that cat, over there?" The woman peers in the direction I am pointing.

"Oh, my gawd," she said, then strode toward the trailer I was pointing to, "that is Ariana. I haven't seen her in months."

It was her long lost Siamese, now pregnant. The woman who lives in that trailer said the cat just recently appeared and was living under her trailer. I said, "Let me use your phone." I called the vet clinic, to see if one more cat could be fixed, even though it was almost noon. "Sure," Mr. Receptionist says.

I set a trap for her, since she's turned shy. I caught her within moments and within another few moments, pregnant Ariana was at the vet. I told Jon, the front desk man, "She doesn't need a seventh litter."

The trailer park woman said she's had six litters already, that she knows of.

The cat gods manipulated events today, to get me into that trailer park at the exact right moment. In the end, to facilitate timing for the glance that would locate a lost cat badly needing fixed, the cat gods suddenly gave me the need to use a bathroom, then sent me flying face down over a speed bump.

The Cat Gods will do anything to get done what they want done. I'm just their servant. They grant me no rights or benefits either, as their servant/slave. But, what can I do? It's not like the ACLU is going to represent me in a case against the cat gods, demanding better working conditions.

What are you going to do? The cat's getting fixed and the cat gods are appeased, pleased with me.

For now.

Organic Goods More Eye Catching Than Police Chase through Co-op

The notable sentence in the story today, about Corvallis police running down a man, wanted on felony charges, is this one, and it is a classic:

"Wiggins-Wahlert (co-op manager) said she was relieved that the incident ended so peacefully, with no injuries to customers who continued shopping throughout the incident."

Click post title to go to the Gazette Times story.

The hour long chase ended when the scratched up felon raced through the co-op, with police chasing him and a police dog at the back of the coop. Apparently, co-op customers were focused on picking out their organic produce and products and didn't pay any attention to the police chase going on around them.

You co-op customers are dedicated to your products!

Apparently, the felon chose to engage in a foot race with the wrong officer, too. Officer Goodwin runs marathons.

Four Cats being Fixed Today

Four cats are up being fixed today. I didn't think I'd get one of the 6th street ones picked up, because the darn train crossing 6th, then parking on the tracks, just sitting there. This is common in Albany. Albany is really a big switching yard. The people in the house, when I finally got there, by driving all the way around, said it's frustrating and the railroad seems to enjoy tying things up during rush hour, something I have noticed also. But I finally got the cat. I had to stand outside and yell "I am here to pick up your cat. This is the last chance." And, finally, "I'm leaving." At this point someone rushed out of the back, with the cat in a carrier.

Another female comes from another house farther north on 6th. He said "she came home" whatever that meant. A few months ago, I got about 8 fixed there. Now there's this female and her kittens, just weaned.

The other two being fixed are the preggie tame brown tabby from the doomed Millersburg situation and a gray tabby on white feral from same location.Pregnant tame abandoned brown tabby, from the doomsday Millersburg colony.
The Millersburg feral gray tab on white.
This is the female "who came back" from a farther north 6th street household, where I've gotten about 8 cats fixed. Now there are her kittens also in need of fixing. They too have just been weaned.
6th street female, being spayed today. She'd had three kittens. I already got three teen males, two adult males and three adult females fixed from this one Albany household alone. Two of the three now weaned kittens, from this female, died, after their son sprayed a room, where the kittens were living, with bug spray, while his parents were gone.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Friendship Whores

My own lonliness got me to thinking about the need for a new profession out there---friendship whores.

These would be people very good at pretending. You'd pay a fee for them to pretend to be your friend for a certain amount of time. Or even a relative, an ex-husband, ex-boyfriend, cousin, son, daughter, anyone you wanted.

Say it might cost $50 to buy a friendship whore who would go out to lunch with you and chat like your best girlfriend, gossiping and catching up. I would be able to choose from male friendship whores that look and talk like my brothers. I would pay a fee and these two guys would "surprise" me, on my birthday and take me to a movie, and we'd laugh about our childhood antics, that sort of thing. When setting up the appointment, a person would submit a one page summary of history they want the friendship whore to know, prior to the engagement.

With our isolated society and with so many of us out there alone in the world, this is a needed profession.

I wonder if this type of whoring would be considered illegal and seedy too?

Possible company mottos: "They say you can't put a price on friendship. We can!"
"When you have nobody, we'll be your somebody. For a price."

Millersburg Fiasco





Darn it, I got things messed up in Millersburg. Some hairdresser who lives in Albany and her friend, who lives in Millersburg, have been feeding cats at a trashed out abandoned trailer. I am always wary about such things, because I respect private property. This woman told me this property had been abandoned by owner. Actually, I heard this elsewhere also, from someone who knows her. But, nonetheless, I have a rule about never trapping on private property without owner permission.

Turns out, someone is working to clean up the property. When I saw this, I left immediately and called one of the women feeding the cats. It's a messed up story. This property has been abandoned for several months, with cats living under it, breeding, kittens being born. I told the woman I am under no circumstances going to rehome these cats, that they would need to do so, if it is done. I told them plopping a plate of food down is easy as combing your hair. The rest of rescue and helping cats is the hard part and not to expect me to do it all.

She wanted to know if they had to make a donation for fixing these cats. I said, "Well, it would be nice, because otherwise, the cost is paid by volunteers, like myself even, because I'm paying for bait and gas, and holding them here night before and after surgery and then volunteers work to raise money. So of course you should contribute something, for gosh sakes."

Everyone should, but almost no one does. Exploitation is what it is called. Entitlement attitude.

Anyhow, in the end, I lured two of the cats to public property, the edge of the road, and trapped them there. But I told the woman I will not trap underneath that trailer without owner permission, that they should feed them elsewhere, so they can legally trap them, like on the woman's property, which is nearby, who feeds them, for gosh sakes.

Apparently most of the neighborhood strays have migrated to this trailer, since the windows are smashed out and there is shelter, and now food left on the porch. So, with owner permission, it is actually a great place to catch all the Millersburg strays and get them fixed. A perfect set up. But, again, need owner permission. So I told them that, and they're supposed to work on getting it.

UPDATE: Turns out, the people who lived there and trashed the place only leased it from the real owner, who is dismantling the trailer, readying it to be pulled away for trash. So both women are trying to pull me into to taking full responsibility, the usual, and I am fighting back this time, telling them I will not trap anymore cats to be fixed, unless they work at finding them homes. They claimed they would do so, by asking around. I said, "That isn't working at finding them homes. You can place a free ad once a month. You can advertise repeatedly on craigslist. You can post fliers." The next excuse was that they were both tight on money. I told her again, none of the above mentioned things costs anything to do.

So, in the end, I told them I would get these two fixed, return them and not to call me again, unless they're going to find them homes. Because these are doomed cats, with the trailer being torn down, and them soon having absolutely nowhere to live or be fed. I told her again, it is easy to feed cats, hard to put effort into getting them fixed and finding them homes and I can't do it all.

I told her how much pain I'm in, how exhausted, and neither of them had a reaction. It's all about them wanting someone else to do it, so they don't have to have sleepless nights worrying about it, or exert any effort at all. This is the norm reaction here and maybe everywhere.

It is a wonderful thought, that someone could just be called, to do all the work, of trapping them, getting them fixed, vaccinated, treated for parasites and finding them homes, too. What a wonderful thought.

I wish I could just call a magic number and have people happily say "We'll take care of everything. Don't worry another moment about this. And, it will cost you nothing! Go take a nap, or soak in a hot tub while we solve that for you."

Don't you wish there were magic numbers to call for every problem? I do!! Boy, I do. I'm going to dream on that one tonight, about a magic number to call to solve every problem. All one must do is say, "Hey, I need this done." or "This needs changed. Do it." The customer service on the magic number hotlines would be out of this world wonderful too.

But, the reality is this: there are very few people working to help cats, doing the extremely difficult work, of getting them fixed, and finding them homes. And these people are not funded and for the most part, do it on their own time and on their own money, exactly the opposite of how it should be. And, these few people are worn to death, by the frequency of demanding calls, the abuse, abandonment, sorrow and horrors seen daily, and the reluctance of anyone to join the effort or at least to contribute to it.

To ask the very few people out there doing anything, to do more, is criminal, hard, selfish, mean.

You want the cat problem solved? Then get involved. Get out there and be willing to do something other than plop down a plate of food and demand others do the hard part.

Right now, there are no magic numbers. I am not one. Please, understand that. I am not a magic number. I wish I was, but I am human. I have a breaking down painfully on fire body, limited time, limited space, limited everything and I do the best I can which I think is really good, for doing all this without any pay or pay back. I think I've done really well, surviving this long, in this harsh reality.

I tried to call some MIllersburg people I know, mainly to gripe about the trailer situation, which isn't far from where they live, see if they had any ideas, too, and to hear a human voice. I also told this woman, who sounded groggy or high or alcoholed slightly, how hard it is, how lonely I am. I said I should just go jump off a mountain, get it over with, because things are only going to get worse for me, although I can't even climb a mountain now with my body in such shape. She said "don't do that". I perked up, thinking maybe she'd say, "Let's just go do something fun for a day next week. You need some fun." Instead she said, "If you jumped off a mountain or ran away, then somebody would have to place all your cats." My head sagged. Darn it.

I wasn't trying to blackmail that couple into doing something fun with me. Not really. Guess I just wanted something from that phone call, something like caring or empathy, or a hint someone gave a damn. I help lots of people. Would it be so awful for one of them to invite me out on the town or to the coast, or just something I wanted to do? Yeah well whatever.

Robinhood and Sammy Negative on FIV/Felk

I was happy to find out yesterday Robinhood and Sammy, the pneumonia kitten, are negative on FIV/Felk. Donations from June and Diane helped get these kitties tested. Robinhood also got his rabies vaccination. So he is totally ready for a home.

Sammy is also on additional antibiotics for her illness which is waning rapidly.

I am trying to recuperate from inflammation of my spinal cord, neck, head, shoulders, face--nerves aflame, on fire. Even my calves. I don't know what is up. It didn't help last night the cats would crawl all over me, waking me up just after I'd just get to sleep again, over and over. This is why I'm always totally exhausted. I never get a good nights rest. This is why sometimes I resort to sleeping in my car in rest areas.

I rarely take anything for pain or anything else, but this morning, I took an Aleve. I usually pack myself in ice for spinal cord pain.

I know I need a vacation, to get away totally, but that's tough to do when I have nobody to take care of my cats and no money to go anywhere. But the toll on my body has been massive this year especially, from stress, overwork and lack of sleep. There is no answer for me. One day I'll just die here.

I would love to soak in a jaquzzi off and on, for like three days. Have access to a jaquzzi for that long. Sounds like it would feel dreamily wonderful on my broken up hurting body. I've been in a jaquzzi only a handful of times in my life, maybe three times, so maybe I'm only remembering that it would feel better than it really might feel.

But, in pain this morning, still in PJ's, which are ragged, to say the least, someone knocks on my door. I call through the door "Who is it?" Because I don't get visitors, unless I have a pre-arranged kitten adoption.

It's a church lady. "I'm going through the neighborhood talking to people about reading the Bible more," she says, through the door. I peak through the window and see what looks like a Cadilac parked by the curb. A church lady in a Cadilac. Boy howdy.

"I don't open the door to solicitors," I said, firmly, through the door still.

She started to respond, probably to say that she wasn't a solicitor, then must have thought better of it and quit, mid sentence. She is a solicitor, selling her brand of religion. From a Cadilac!

There's lots of that around here. Door to door selling this or that, peddling everything from bogus miracle windows to re-roofing scams to religious door to door zealot salesmen and women, just seems nonstop sometimes. I need to get a sign, a scarey one, "NO Solicitors of Any Kind! Violators Will Be Violated!" Something like that.

I am trying to find a new barn home option for Atom and Last Kitten Standing. The one fell through I had counted on. The woman must still be sick. She'd said she'd be ready for them and at the barn all weekend, but, turned out, she got sick. I still haven't heard back from her, so I'd guess she's still sick. She's a woman who works extremely hard day in and day out.

They are extremely weary of bathroom life and I am weary of not having much access to my bathroom with them, and the Starvation Kids, in it. With them in there, I don't have much chance to handle and tame the Starvation Kids, also without options.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Sunny Gets a Home. Sashi leaving Thursday.

Sunny got a home today, near Independence, as a buddy to a little super friendly kitten, nice situation for Sunny. Was happy about it. And a friend of mine has been posting fliers about Sashi needing a home, at her workplace. It paid off for Sashi, who will be leaving here Thursday, along with the silver torbi four week old.

Yahoo! Woopee! Doing the "reduced numbers here" dance! Doing the "Adopted out a Kitten Today" jig. Have my happy face on!

This afternoon, Robinhood, the previously eartipped male, from the Waverly duplex, and the pneumonia kitten are headed to the vet, to be checked out, and tested.

I only picked up the ten year old female this morning from the canal district. She was supposed to have the biggest teen male ready, too, but she said she couldn't find him this morning.

She said they had a ruckus in the night, woke up with the dogs barking their heads off and the sounds of someone digging in the alley behind their place. "Digging?" I queried, "as in digging like a grave?"

"Well, we don't know why they were digging out back, at that hour," the woman said without emotion, like she wasn't interested really, or like it was a fairly normal happenstance or like she'd just given up on everything and could no longer react to anything.

She said her sons went out with a flashlight but when they shined it on the person or people digging, they shined a flashlight right back at them, so they went back inside immediately.

"Have you been out to check it out this morning?" I asked, because now I'm wanting to go look, out of curiosity. "No," we haven't. They won't look either.

But I can hardly stand it, wondering what they were digging out in the alley last night. That alley kind of ends, halfway between the two streets and gives way to just dirt and some brush, and junk, the rest of the way down the block. So you have to wonder, why they'd be digging at 4:30 in the morning at the end of an alley.

At least I wonder. But maybe I don't want to know.

I took five cats up this morning to be fixed. All are from Albany. Four are females. Four are from another trailer park.The ten year old female, from the canal district, mother of two of the kittens, the torti sisters, I took in here.
Two females and a male, being fixed today, from another Albany trailer park.
Another female, being fixed today, from same trailer park.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Obama

I was told about the pizza party Thursday in Albany, wherever it is, to watch and celebrate Obama's acceptance speech, by the Obama Oregon campaign worker woman I accidentally called back, thinking it was a call from a woman wanting to adopt a rescued kitten.

I don't want to hear the acceptance speech. It'll be the same words he spoke in Albany, pretty much, when here campaigning. I went to the Obama speech, for the ambulance chasing thrill of it. That ticket I got is how the Obama campaign has my personal information now.

He was painfully tired that day. I know all the signs of exhaustion. I have experience. I just was aching to tell everybody to go away, leave him alone, and don't you see he's drop dead tired. And I wanted those secret service people to do their real jobs of protecting him, including to make sure he gets enough sleep, even if they have to force it on him, and for them to go get him a nice bed and post guard and let him sleep, cell phone and Obama fan free, for like ten hours. I dream of doing just that. It was painful to see him keep going, with that speech, and the people feeding off him, and him having to perform the "Got Hope?" thing, when I knew he wanted to collapse somewhere.

All the towns must have looked the same to him by then, and the people too, and he'd have to somehow personalize each little town's speech to make the people feel like he understood each town and liked it better than the rest and that it and the people in it were very special. I wonder if he hated playing that game in the end, because it would be difficult to even remember what year it was, when running that kind of schedule, for so long, let alone what little teeny town you're in this hour.

I am not interested in hearing another speech. Words. Anybody can speak words. I am looking for some action. Oh, it's change, you're promising, Mr. Candidate?
OK, let's see some then. Cough up some change!

Yup, that's what I'm looking for, action change. Not flowery words about change, although who doesn't like a good well written pep talk? Especially later on, taken out of context.

I'm voting Obama. Sure I am. Why would I not?

See, we as a country are deep in the doodoo field, where all the off leash dogs roam around dropping their doodoo. The owners are racing around in circles after their dogs. Some folks are trying to instruct the dogs on how to hold it, so they don't doodoo in the field. Others are trying to instruct the owners on how to properly use a doggee doodoo pickup bag. And everybody is knee deep in dog shit.

We, as a country, need to find our way out of the doggee doodoo field.

McCain is way out there in the middle of the doodoo field. Obama's only about ten feet into the field so far. So that there is why I'm voting for Obama.

Mixup with Calls for Rescued Kittens and Obama Oregon

I got a call this evening, but didn't get to the phone in time, and no message was left. I was sure it was the woman who is interested in Sunny, the orange tabby Vanman Kitten Yard Kitten. I did last call return and got the number. I called the number back, expecting it to be the woman wanting to adopt the rescued kitten.

It wasn't. It was the Obama campaign. I was thrown totally off balance. The woman who answered said, "Oh, you called back the Obama Oregon campaign." I said, "What? I called back a telemarketer?" (I consider political calls telemarketing. She doesn't.)

"We're not telemarketers," she said, slightly outraged. "We're Obama Oregon," like I was supposed to instantly fall on my knees, asking forgiveness and kissing feet.

"Well I thought you were someone wanting to adopt a little rescued kitten," I stumbled on. "You can understand, I'm kind of disappointed that you're a telemarketer instead," I said.

"I'm a dog person and my dog likes to chase cats," Obama Oregon girl says cheerily. The hair on my neck begins to rise and I feel a hiss forming deep in my throat.

"We're having a pizza party to watch his acceptance speech on Thursday and you're invited," she goes on. It's at some Albany pizza parlor.

"And is there free pizza and beer with that?" I ask, hopeful. She stumbles, kind of clears her throat, giggles nervously. Apparently everybody is to buy their own. Man, that's a cheap political party. If the Republicans put it on, the beer would be free and flowing. They know how to get votes!

"Oh, I see," I said, dejected, into the phone, to Obama Oregon girl.

I'm vastly disappointed and thinking, 'so why would I come?' but instead, I say, "And you don't even want to adopt a rescued kitten?"

But I'm thinking, 'if you don't adopt a kitten, I am not coming to your stupid pizza party where I even have to pay for my own pizza and beer.'

And then I say, "Boy, this is just real awkward, isn't it?"

She giggles some more and I say "Well, thank you. Have a nice pizza party. Don't drink too much. Bye." and hang up.

Returning the Feral Abbytorbi

I returned that feral abbytorbi, trapped in the alley last week, spayed last Friday. I'd kept her the weekend in a rabbit hutch, because she was skinny, and I wanted to let her have some recovery and eating time. I did deworm and deflea her, and she did eat a lot. I returned her and talked to the woman with the sick kittens, three of whom I took in. She positively identified the feral female as the mother of the pneumonia girl I have here, and another kitten she is caring for, from a first litter of the summer.

That property too is under city deadline for cleanup. The city has demanded they clean up the junk in the yard and out back by the end of the month, which is only a few days away and they have not started. They've been under notice to do it for at least a month, she said. I don't know what they'll do now, since they've waited so long and have not even started to clean it up. The city is really cracking down on properties filled with junk, it seems.

The fourth kitten, the one she says she has a home for, was racing around, very happy and full of herself. She looked good. The woman has been giving her the meds I gave her to put in her eyes.

Tomorrow, the ten year old female and one of the three teens not fixed yet will go in. That will leave two teens there, needing fixed, and then it will be done. She was very happy to see I'd caught that feral female. I'm happy about it too. She said the people I had the run in with, who yelled at me, drink, and that is likely the chemical agent of personality change that caused that interaction. She's says they are nice people most of the time. But drinking can change nice folks into mean nasty people.

I like this woman and her son a lot. The junk filled yard and barely noticed cats, I don't understand it. I don't. But I like the woman.

Video of Five Minute Spay Procedure

This video shows a technique for a five minute spay and the argument for using this type of procedure. Click post title to go to video.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

FCCO Clinic Today

I went to the FCCO clinic today, but got a late start. I couldn't find my keys!

I didn't take any cats. The coordinator couldn't sign up enough vets for a two shift all day clinic, probably because so many people are on last of summer vacations before school starts. So, he had to cut short the number of cats allowed into the clinic. I didn't mind not bringing any.

I was going to try to trap a mom and four kittens at a Corvallis complex, but really, they couldn't go back there after they were fixed. I've trapped there before, only to have them end up at Heartland, scheduled for death, re-trapped by Animal Control. So, without anywhere for this mom and kittens to go, to trap them, would be foolish and heartbreaking and wasteful of my scarce dollars. I have to pay $25 per cat to take them to the FCCO clinics, out of my own pocket now or with donations I round up. I've slid by before, taking lots of cats in that I trap for people who don't or won't or can't trap the cats they feed themselves, scrounging the donations I can, but I kind of got scolded two clinics ago for doing that, so now I only go if I have money to cover any cats I take.

So I went over and helped awhile at the clinic, after I finally found my keys, behind my desk no less, drug there by the playful Sashi. But I suddenly became very tired, and fell asleep on a couch. When I woke up, I told Nick, the coordinator, I was coming home.

I stopped by the barn where the two gray boys were supposed to go this weekend. I had tried and tried to get ahold of the woman, without success. I could not find her there, but spent an hour cleaning the room where she feeds the cats, thinking she'd see my car and come talk to me. Finally her husband came through the barn and said his wife was sick. I told him I hadn't brought the cats because I had not been able to get ahold of her. And finally I just came on home.

I had a couple offers of homes for cats. Sunny, the orange tabby, who was going to go to the barn home, too, is headed for a home now near Monmouth on Tuesday. That is great news. I asked if they would consider taking the two gray boys also, from the Kitten Yard, but haven't heard back. If they don't, that's fine, I'll have to find them somewhere, but I'm really hoping they will. They have acreage and shops, etc, large property.

Anyhow, still no home for Sashi, however. I decided against the Corvallis home with the dog for her. The male cat they had before, adopted from Heartland, but who disappeared after a year, was severely stressed at the house, they said, and I am betting the dog, an energetic herder, had something to do with that.

So anyhow, another Corvallis family has expressed interest, but I really want her to be an indoor only kitten. Truly I do. She' beloved. I don't want her mauled and torn up by coytoes or a dog or hit by a car, that breaks her bones, but leaves her alive for awhile. I don't want her shot or poisoned or trapped by a cat hating neighbor and dumped miles away or drowned. These are the fates met by a lot of free roaming house pets.

People don't seem to care, either. They let it happen and get another cat.

I just hope to find some responsible kind person or family for Sashi. There must be one out there for her.

Dashing

 Got a message this morning.  Was I even really awake yet?   The weather has been really winterish, with winds, pouring rain, cold, even thu...